I scratch and be done with it.
this post was submitted on 13 Aug 2023
60 points (81.2% liked)
Asklemmy
43803 readers
1435 users here now
A loosely moderated place to ask open-ended questions
Search asklemmy π
If your post meets the following criteria, it's welcome here!
- Open-ended question
- Not offensive: at this point, we do not have the bandwidth to moderate overtly political discussions. Assume best intent and be excellent to each other.
- Not regarding using or support for Lemmy: context, see the list of support communities and tools for finding communities below
- Not ad nauseam inducing: please make sure it is a question that would be new to most members
- An actual topic of discussion
Looking for support?
Looking for a community?
- Lemmyverse: community search
- sub.rehab: maps old subreddits to fediverse options, marks official as such
- !lemmy411@lemmy.ca: a community for finding communities
~Icon~ ~by~ ~@Double_A@discuss.tchncs.de~
founded 5 years ago
MODERATORS
Amazing. Are you this good with needing to pee?
If I'm awake enough to notice an itch then I'm scratching it
How do you know you're itchy if you're not already awake? Also maybe you need less itchy sheets or pajamas.
Saving up for 500 thread cotton
100% best sheets Iβve ever owned, 1,000 TC 100% Egyptian cotton sheets. That is like being cuddled by the softest, smoothest clouds ever. Stupid expensive (I have a king sized mattress) so they usually run a couple hundred dollars. However, they last a really long time, and get softer with age/washing.
One set has lasted me about 10 years of weekly washing. Only reason I had to buy another set this year, was because Iβd torn all the corners of the fitted sheets over time. Tbf I do wrestle them on there quite roughly as I canβt squeeze in on one side of my bed thatβs up against the wallβ¦ so Iβm definitely not gentle..
As someone who suffered from restless leg for more than ten years before the doctors had medications to help, I can tell you that it doesn't matter which answer you pick, you're going to be up all night.
Do the medications help?
It was the only thing that ever helped! I went for quite a few years getting maybe 3-4 hours of rest every night, I was a walking zombie. Up until that point I had found that leg stretches before bed were helping to ease the symptoms but eventually that stopped doing any good, and I didn't have the energy to get out and walk or do anything else. Meanwhile marijuana got legalized here and my wife has been making edibles to help me sleep. That helped a little but I never really woke up feeling rested, you know? So between these meds and the cookies things have really changed in the last few years. The meds let me actually sleep, and the cookies make sure I can go back to sleep when I wake up in the middle of the night. I've been getting out for walks again and have dropped 30 pounds this year so things are really looking up.
That's amazing to hear. What are the meds called?
This one is Gabapentin, although I've heard there are others available too. Definitely worth talking to your doctor about, they might send you to a specialist. That's who figured out what would help me.
Why do you itch? What is causing you to be itchy. You should not be waking up itchy that is not normal. Diagnose what is causing the itch, and then remove that thing, then you don't have to even deal with the itch conundrum.
But also... scratch that sum'bitch.
Am I the only person who thinks this question sounds like it's from the Voight-Kampff test?
Now that you mention it, yes it totally does!
Put the phone down, scratch your nuts, and go to sleep ffs.
Put on body lotion before sleep to make it a non-issue. Also, scratch it.
Lotion is the only thing that helps, especially in winter. If my skin is too dry no amount of scratching will save me, it will only get worse. OP, you may want to try it before going to bed.
I also have a bonus lotion on my bedside table as a backup
Yes, for the dry skin
I have a dog that sheds. I'd wake up looking like Cousin It.
Ooh never tried that thanks for the suggestion
I have this often when I go to bed directly after showering. I get itchy all over, but scratching makes it worse. I know the itch will pass eventually, so I just wait it out. I hate it though, so I try not to shower before bed.
Try checking if your shampoo or bodywash has Sodium Laurel Sulphate. A lot of people including me are allergic to it, and it can cause itchiness. There's a lot of options out there free of SLS, so try using products without it.
It does contain sls. I don't have anything in house without sls, but I'll try it. Thanks for the tip!
Like how often? Could be your soap is causing skin dryness. Maybe try a different brand, or use moisturizing cream after showering.
Definitely scratch. Honestly, my brain would be thinking of all the ways in which to scratch said itch and would keep me up longer. Just do it.
Scratch it! What kind of masochist just endures the itch until it goes awayβ½
It's the easiest when in bed to scratch an itch! Imagine you're going downhill on a bike, and your back is itchy all the sudden, or you're swimming in the olympics and you're now itchy... people take this for granted!
scratch
I have a hard time going to sleep. If I have any issues, I try to deal with it before going to sleep. Otherwise it doesn't work.
Scratch.
wait until you take too much niacin - full body itching
Some pre-work out powders make you feel like you have fire ants crawling in your skin. It's kind neat.
I get suicidal trying to choose and end up not sleeping.
Depends where the itch is, but usually I'd scratch
I'm pretty wiggly until I get into deeper sleep. Got to find that spot and position of maximum 
I currently have two mosquito bites on my ankle. Last night was completely ruined and tonight isn't looking much better.
Have you tried the X trick?
Please elaborate
The βXβ trick is when you have a insect bite and you press your nails in and make an X. However it hasnβt been the antidote that was promised for me personally. I swear by those Benadryl βafter biteβ sticks. Thatβs the shit.
If itβs more of a rash then I donβt bother with the stick and go for that good good relief from the Benadryl anti itch ointment. That shit works
Hmm the X trick is new to me. I generally just pop a Benadryl but I get why people who don't like to take medicine would have some other methods
I'm going to try both these things. The X trick sounds on par with with what I'm now going to call "The slapping it trick", but mostly I've just been trying to power through it like some kind of animal without access to modern medicine and Amazon prime which is really unnecessary.